LAHORE, June 11: Governor Khalid Maqbool said on Tuesday besides maintaining law and order police would have to support the district governments in stamping out various ills from society.

Speaking at the passing out ceremony at the Elite Police Training School near Bedian here, he said they would have to play their role, in league with the district governments, in removing encroachments, eliminating spurious drugs and adulteration in agriculture inputs, and checking water theft so that the rule of law and its supremacy could be established in the province.

Governor Maqbool reiterated his resolve to transform police into a force which was imbibed with the spirit of protecting people and supporting the weak.

He said besides arresting criminals and getting them punished from the court of law, police must also help the government and society in rooting out the real causes of heinous crime.

The governor said for giving the people a sense of protection it was necessary to ensure them that in case of any happening police would quickly react and leave no stone unturned in arresting the criminals.

He said the process of the recruitment of 5,000 constables and ASIs would be completed during the next few months.

In his welcome address IGP Malik Asif Hayat said the Punjab government had earmarked Rs500 million for police reforms. Another Rs610 million would also be given by the federal government for the purpose, he said.

He said police had arrested 103 terrorists last year whereas 27 officers and constables were killed and 40 others injured while fighting them (terrorists).

The IGP said 87 criminals were arrested after encounters while another 20 were injured.

The governor distributed prizes among the candidates who had shown good performance during the training course and reviewed different aspects of the training at the school.